I have been reading through most of the posts on when pears ripen. I have found two methods that kind of tell me I should pick them now. If the pears are lifted to a horizontal position and easily come off of the tree they are ready to be picked. Secondly, many who have Barletts have already picked them. I have Barlett, Flemish Beauty and Seckel. A seckel fell into my netting the other day and my husband and I shared it. It was rock hard, but sweet. Still very small; not quite the size of a golf ball. This is the first time I had to bag pears (then found empty bags on the ground) squirrels started to take all of them! Then I double netted the tree and wrapped the trunk. No more damage. Now I’m looking into this netting that is making the tree look like it is part of a MASH unit in Korea. Do I pick now or is it still too early for my varieties. Since pears ripen from inside out, it might be time? Thanks!
My Seckels started to separate a couple days ago
I picked them, they were ready to let go
They’re kind of hard and crunchy, tho - sweet but not juicy
I have them in the refrigerator, something may come of them yet
I fail to understand Seckels
Thanks Itilton! I guess I’ll start picking tomorrow. And I will take pictures.
OMG, mrsg, you sound like me. So far, nobody (but me) has found my Seckels. For me, Seckel usually isn’t ripe for another month. But, I happened to be out this evening checking on them, and I ended up knocking 2 of a bunch of 5 right off. I barely touched them. I think they’re still a little on the green side, so going to try to leave the rest on the tree for at least another week. That means I’m going to have to check the tree every day, in case some actually start dropping off. If that happens, I’ll pick the rest and put those in the fridge. Been a prolific and rather early-ripening year. I was able to relocate my Davis weather station, so very glad I got that done prior to ch timing. Hoping for another great ch winter again. And another year of great fruit set! Edit: Forgot to mention about how to pick Seckels, since they’re a little different than other pears. I think they’re actually easier because they ripen on the tree, like other normal fruits, lol! So, you want to first watch for the dark green skin to turn yellow green. The lentils should go from white to brown. The skin should start to have a waxy appearance and feel. I saved that info from GW way, way back (put it in my fruit spreadsheet for reference.) Leave them on the counter to finish ripening. Or, if you want to extend them for eating, refrigerate. And once they take on the above appearance, they should separate very easily when lifted up.
Patty S.
Thanks HQ!
Mine weren’t at all yellow, but they were definitely ready to drop, falling into the net
Mine too. Three more seckels and two Flemish Beauty today. Of the seckels picked yesterday one is already getting soft. They are beautiful! Once I figure out how to get my pictures out of my iphone to my computer I’ll post some pictures. The pears are beautiful!
Mrsg47,
Seckel are supposed to be the highest sugar content of all pears. Have actually heard them called sugar pears as frequently as I’ve heard them called seckel. Can’t wait to see the pictures!